Lean-Manufacturing in the Automobile Industry

Paper Summary:

The context of the problem investigated in this study is the contemporary automobile manufacturing approach where the competitive environment is increasingly global in character. Each automobile manufacturing operation in a single country is, in effect, in direct competition with counterpart operations in every other country wherever automobile manufacturing occurs. The problem is examined in the context of an automobile assembly plant of the TBC Company. The on-rush of economic globalization persuaded all American automobile manufacturers that a completely new approach to manufacturing was required in place of the hodge-podge of mass production and Japanese khan bhan techniques that had developed. The result of this conclusion was the development of lean manufacturing. The problem investigated in this study involves the transition in manufacturing from a mass production approach to a lean manufacturing approach. The main characteristics of the problem addressed are (1) materials management, (2) engineering changes, (3) machine, equipment and facility readiness, (4) labor flexibility, (5) outsourcing, and (6) cycle-time management.

Table of Contents:
Problem Context and Characteristics
Literature Review, Best Practices and Focal Organization Characteristics
Research Design
Gap Analysis
Conclusions and Recommendations

From the Paper:

"The greater choice of suppliers in international markets makes it possible to reduce costs and improve the quality of procured materials. In relation to production, the generation of economies of scale can be realized either through (1) the concentration of all production activities or through (2) the construction of a number of plants according to the needs of specialization. Production in decentralized plants can facilitate the attainment of several objectives, including (1) lower costs, (2) learning curve economies, (3) the establishment of a company in foreign markets, (4) the introduction of new products, and (5) technical leadership (Gulati, 1995)."

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